I started my bowling at age 52, and league back in the 2010 season. I've heard it all from the old timers to the new young bowlers, leagues that are scratch and fun leagues, now sports leagues.

There is no doubt in my mind that if bowling as a sport is to continue, people age 30 and under have to love this game. If they don;t, those that control it are so incredibly out of touch, they are killing it. Just absolutely killing it. Bowlers and proprietors are also culpable. We all are really.

It's not the nonsense of the back in the day people so much, it's the selfish nature of competition. More $$$ centric than bowling centric. People that are no shows at league because the positions are already set for the end of league. People that start asking for subs after the first half, knowing their little prize fund will pay for their absence.

Frankly, I've grown to love the sport in a very short while. But I've never in my life seen a game so sadly in need of a spark to keep it going. I've come to see that it's not that the USBC leadership doesn't care, it's that their myopic vision doesn't allow for any understanding of what's going on in the real world. Many local and state associations are a complete joke, yet they need to depend on them. The house shots are definitely a joke, but the Open Championships humble professionals.

Rebuild from the ground up with people that understand all bowlers, not just the elite.

When I was young, proprietors almost gave bowling away to young bowlers because they knew it was a way to pay it forward. As juniors, we would bowl at 9 AM on Saturdays and then go to another house and shoot again at noon. All for about $2.50 :-)

I think too many young people are living 'virtually' through their electronic devices and not out there living their 'real' lives :-)

I think bowling will pass into history. I hope not, but I'm not seeing any activity by the USBC, Proprietors or bowlers themselves that would convince me it might go the other way.

The USBC has focused 100% of their attention to competitive bowling, clearly separating league bowling from competitive bowling. From Junior/Youth on up, they realized that the "Future for the sport" is a rebuild in progress. I can't say I disagree with that focus, as the proprietors own the rest of bowling.

The only people that can do anything about league bowling per se, are the bowlers themselves. Like everyone else it seems, we have trouble getting adults to take it seriously. The Sport part of bowling is all tournaments, some good scratch leagues and what have you. League bowling for the most part is recreational, mixed handicap leagues. Nothing wrong with that either, it's been that way going back to Fred Flinstone.

Proprietors have done what they've done to keep the doors open. But many of the private centers have not reinvested, some are sitting on pricey real estate, others have families that want no part of it anymore. Most of the new centers built are either boutique centers of entertainment businesses. Many have no leagues, and many are not sanctioned.

It also doesn't help when major owners such as Bowlmor look past leagues as part of their business model.

Leagues were never part of their business model. Leagues are only part of the model for some new centers, and mostly old centers. Heck, even the USBC doesn't consider leagues part of their existing model.

The reason is $$$. You could have 10,000 people ready to bowl in a group. The least profitable of all for new centers is league bowlers. The ones that complain the most for existing centers is, league bowlers. The ones that want to pay the least while demanding the most are, league bowlers.

Anyone watching the live stream from Nationals last night got to see some of the very finest from my area. BowlingDynamics, who was 3rd in Team and 4th in Team All Events last year, just settled into 2nd place in team event this year.

Their captain, Dave Cirigliano, is probably on the list for best bowlers at the Open without an Eagle. He has eight prior top 10 finishes, he's one of only two bowlers with three 300s at the Open, and he's 8th on the average list of bowlers with 30 years. And the rest of the team and their companion team are no slouches either. I'd love to see Dave take the lead in doubles today.

Their performance may say something about NABR's 3266 as well. Time will tell. Matt McNiel's team bowls the first weekend in June, and Chris Barnes' star studded team bowls in early July.

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